We can think of what we do with money as a form of self-expression. Actually, don’t think, because it is. What you do with your money in a moment and the fundamental motive behind it is how and what you are in that moment. That’s why it is worth your attention and time to explore that fundamental motive. And if you look at it this way, money serves as a amplication tool of one’s character. So, the more money a person possesses, the more obvious what the person does with money demonstrates the character he is.

By developing your individual — your character — over time, you lose the dependence on the world around you and become less and less influenced by what you are told, and just be you. Because you can just be you, whatever you do is absolutely your own choice. This is convenient because changing your character changes how you act in all aspects of life, and that includes your personal finance.

By developing and changing your character, you change the way you treat and spend money.

That’s the reason why I place self-growth, development, reflection, discovery, and awareness at such high esteem. The utmost priority and the highest state of an individual is to be the person you are. Not your ego. Not an image of what you “should be”. Not what the world has told you so. When you can do that, you do not need the world to define you. You are who you are. You will not be afraid to stand alone. You become fearless.

The difficulty of this growing process is the difficulty in shedding. You will shed some believes and traditional ideas that once made up your reality. Tougher yet, you will likely need to make the choice to shed some people who maybe deemed important in your life… A hypothetical, yet serious, question is… “Are you afraid to stand alone amongst the 6.7~ billion people on earth?”

And yet again, these discussions take us back to the importance of awareness. Awareness helps you dig deep to find yourself, to allow you to observe and then question yourself and everything around you, and then ultimately, helps you to define the person you sincerely want to be. So everyday, I shed a little what I have trained and told to be for 20 some years and become more of the character I am. Simultaneously, I am growing. My character is growing because it is a continuous process of learning through myself, through others, through the world around me, and it is a process that will never end. I am ever changing. If you let it be, the sky is the limit.